When She Cares
by Lacrimosa Cruentus Luna
Summary: It is very often said that Jade doesn't care, that she's heartless and ruthless and a bunch of other lesses. And that may be true—mostly. But only "mostly."


**Author's note: **Well, I don't really know what there is to say about this...except that I fully believe it. Even thought I might be biased.

**Disclaimer: **Victorious? Not mine.

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><p>It is very often said that Jade doesn't care, that she's heartless and ruthless and a bunch of other lesses. And that may be true—mostly. But only "mostly" because there are there are people Jade cares about, even if she only seems to care in snippets of moments that pass by so fast that no one notices she's showing affection to people she (kind of) likes. People like Robbie.<p>

When Jade wanted Rex to die, it wasn't out of malicious intentions. It was like she told Vega: a teenage guy walking around with a puppet (a puppet that's cooler than he is) is _not normal. _Is it really so wrong of her to want him to be normal? She didn't think so at the time. But when she saw Robbie's face when the damn monitor started beeping again, she figured that Robbie still has time to grow. Besides, he's one of her favorite people to torture. She covered up her soft thoughts with a loud groan before losing interest and going back to her jar of back fat (Beck still doesn't understand why she keeps it on her beside table).

Robbie is easy to not care about, but Andre is an entirely different story. It's impossible to not care about Andre so Jade prides herself in being able to pretend she doesn't more often than not. There was that one time when he broke the news that he lost his record deal because of the stupid Diddly-Bops thing when she couldn't swallow down the few consolation words and for a moment, she had wondered if anyone was going to call her out on it. But then Rex—no damn it! _Robbie—_made fun of Andre's predicament so she went back to her trademark cruelty and ripped off his arm. Maybe the puppet is good for some things.

Cat is just as easy to care about as Andre is. Jade hides it behind insults and remarks put in a monotone voice, but she sends the girl away for a good reason. She tries to keep her out of conversations with people who just might question whether or not she needs to be locked up (although if Jade remembers correctly, that's already happened). In fact, it's quite possible that Jade is always caring a little bit about Cat with the exception of when she abandoned them in Beck's RV at the beach. Until all that red hair dye finally seeps out of Cat's brain and she can fully function again, Jade will be subtly watching.

Jade will die before she tells anyone that she cares a little bit about Trina...kind of. It seems harsh when she shouts after Trina, "Nobody likes you!" But she says it because Jade has always been the one to say what everyone has the decency not to. And what no one else will say about Trina is simply a fact that Trina will one day have to accept. Or maybe Trina is just so fucking stupid that she won't ever notice. It's possible.

Vega. At first Jade really did hate her. Sometimes she still kind of does. It isn't because Beck is friends with Tori, contrary to what other people think. Jades knows that the other girl is too good to steal someone else's boyfriend. And that's Jade's problem with her: Tori Vega _oozes _goodness. It practically comes out of her pores. Like sweat. It's Tori's weakness. The thing about it that annoys Jade the most is that Tori is the girl Jade can't ever be, even if she wanted to (which she doesn't, but that isn't the point). But Tori is kind to Jade, a quality that both bothers Jade and confuses her. Like that time when Tori didn't rat Jade out when she faked that black eye and got Tori in trouble. When Jade went to go see her, she expected a fight, but instead she found herself swept into a wave of Tori's goodness, a light so bright and pure that it pulled Jade out of her shadows long enough to _be_ the kind of girl she thought was out of her grasp. It only lasted for a moment, but it was...nice. It also helped Jade decide that she likes herself just the way she is. She owes Tori for that, but she won't ever tell her.

Jade loves Beck (and his hair). Jade has trouble showing it, something she blames on her parents, her father in particular. But the difference between Beck and Jade and Jade's parents is that Beck loves Jade, too, even when she's at her coldest. Sometimes it makes Jade wish that she could reciprocate that obvious warmth, but somehow Beck sees that light in her anyway. Somehow he manages to see past her sharp tongue—or maybe he just likes what she can do with it—and her obsession with scissors and other morbid things. That's why she forgives the way he purposely makes her jealous, not bothering to mention that the cheerleader whose dog he was watching was just a _kid_. And that just makes her love him all the more.

As for Sinjin...no. Just no.

It is constantly said that Jade doesn't care, that she's narcissistic and bitter and likes to _cause_ problems. Jade can't deny the last bit and to be honest, Jade _likes_ it that way. If people think she doesn't care, then they won't come whining to her about all their little problems. Just look at Vega: she's constantly being mobbed for help. Even Jade has gone to her once. Or twice. Okay, so three times, but that's all Jade will admit to.

No, Jade is fine being feared and sticking with those few people who matter to her, to those occasional snippets in time when she cares.

**THE END**


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